We had a great sail today from Halfmoon Bay and are now comfortably anchored behind the pier in Santa Cruz. Comfortable is very relative word, though. For us, in a cat, it is quite comfortable, for others around us, the 18 knots of west wind combined with a 4' SW well is really rolling the monohulls around. Score one for the catamaran!

A couple of days ago we left the safe confines of San Francisco Bay and headed South again. After nearly a month in the bay and the Delta in total powerboat mode, heading out into the "big sea" caused no small bit of trepidation. Even though our trip to Halfmoon Bay was just 30 miles, equal to a sail from Sidney to Vancouver, we were a bit on edge.

First, we had to get out from the Bay. Unfortunately, the tide was predicted to ebb strongly under the bridge all morning which meant tide against wind. Sailors will know that this is never a nice thing and can be uncomfortable at best, and dangerous at worst. The strange thing for us was the the current that we experienced was completely different than forecast. Where we should have had ebb, we had flood! It meant that we moved a bit slower, but our exit from the bay was without the excitement that we expected.

The rest of the trip to Halfmoon Bay was pretty boring. The wind was 3-8 knots so we ended up motor sailing the whole way. Even so, it was a relief to enter the large harbour, completely surrounded by a huge breakwater, and to drop the hook in 18' of calm water.

Nine years ago, this bay was a quiet fishing outpost with a couple of little restaurants for city dwellers who needed a Sunday drive. What we saw this time was quite different. It has been discovered. There were condos, a large hotel, many restaurants, and even a high end boutique mall. Since we arrived on a Saturday it was also crawling with people who had driven down for the day to eat, walk on the sandy beach, and buy fish from the commercial fishermen on the dock. We wondered many years ago why such a nice place hadn't been discovered. Well, it's not that way anymore!

We stayed a couple of nights in the harbour which is near perfect, except for one thing. They have this loud foghorn that blows 24 hours a day, whether it is foggy or not. Can someone please get these guys a fog sensor! While we were there is was mostly sunny and clear with 30 miles of visibility - but the fog horn continued. With earplugs it can still be heard, but at least sleep is then possible.

Now, since we stayed two nights, in spite of the constant honking, you can imagine how great this place is otherwise. We even managed to fit in one of our epic walks. This particular walk totalled 20km and we didn't even have a great destination that we reached. Oh, what I will do to work off the many, many beers!

This morning we hoisted the anchor, and sailed off towards the town of Santa Cruz. Instead of motoring, we had a great sail with wind that built all day. At first, we had the spinnaker up in light air. Then, when the wind shifted to directly from behind we went wing on wing. Throughout our 48 mile day the wind continued to build until it peaked at about 23 knots as we approached the Santa Cruz anchorage. We cruised along at 8 knots, passing several other boats who were, strangely, reefed down and motor sailing.

Santa Cruz is an amazing location to sail into. The shoreline is lined with gorgeous houses with the large swells crashing spectacularly below. As you round Santa Cruz Point, the pier comes into view with its restaurants and shops. And, then, like a mirage, just where you want to anchor, you see a historic amusement park with a wooden roller coaster right on the beach. It's the most interesting backdrop for an anchorage that I think we have experienced.

We'll stay here a couple of days and then cross the bay to Monterey. No foghorns here, but we are in the land of the sea lion and I can already hear them barking away from the perches under the pier!